Conferences & Events

Individuals who experience developmental disabilities, such as autism spectrum disorder, cerebral palsy, or intellectual disability, face pervasive health disparities and limited access to quality health care services. This seminar outlines insights from a recent community research project seeking to establish needs related to individuals with disabilities preparing for and attending health care visits. Survey and interview data provided further rationale for developing an asynchronous, online course to advance health care professionals’ knowledge and skills related to meeting the unique needs of persons living with disabilities and their support systems (e.g., caregivers). Attendees will be encouraged to share input on the curriculum in addition to their related lived and professional experiences during this interactive session.

Addressing the theme:
This seminar seeks to address the conference theme related to ‘Interprofessional collaboration and advocacy to address health equity, racism and bias in practice.’ Individuals who experience developmental disabilities are at an increased likelihood of being in poor health. These persons have a lower likelihood of receiving preventative services (e.g., screenings, vaccinations), have higher rates of poor dental health, and experience poorly managed chronic health conditions (Janicki et al., 1999). Poor health care experiences can lead to avoidance of future visits or reliance on others for communication of symptoms. As a result, preventative care and hygiene may be neglected and lead to increased risks associated with illness and chronic conditions. Interprofessional collaborative practice and education are critical to addressing these disparities.

Learning objectives:
After attending this session, participants will be able to:

1. Describe barriers to quality health care faced by individuals who experience disabilities.
2. Identify practical, easy to implement strategies for enhancing participation of persons living with disabilities in their health care encounters.
3. Investigate opportunities for process adaptation to enhance health care access for individuals who experience disabilities.

Participants will gain actionable skills such as:

1. Effective strategies for identifying and addressing behavior and sensory processing needs related to health care encounters.
2. Techniques for enhancing participation of nonspeaking or minimally speaking individuals in health care encounters.